Toreadors

I wish to voice my disapproval of the subject "Toreadors" on the Carson float in the Rose Parade. This depiction suggests and condones the "sport" of bullfighting, which is not only illegal in this country but extremely cruel to both bulls and horses. I object to this type of subject matter being used in the parade, as it does not reflect the humane characteristics associated with this event. I strongly urge the withholding of judging of this float. LOIS M. TORRANCE Manhattan Beach

The battle for basketball supremacy between the two rival high schools in Woodland Hills - Taft and El Camino Real - has been pretty much a mismatch, with Taft winning every game for more than 20 years. Times are changing. Before a packed gymnasium at Taft on Wednesday night, El Camino Real made it clear that the new City Section powerhouse rests on Valley Circle Boulevard, not Ventura Boulevard. The Conquistadores (19-2, 5-0) routed Taft, 77-48, to take control of the West Valley League race and win for the first time against the Toreadors (9-11, 2-3)

When Taft Coach Tom Stevenson arrived at Palisades High on Friday night, the strong ocean wind struck him like a cold slap in the face. But Stevenson was thankful for the wind. He needed it. Stevenson was certain that because of the gusting wind, Palisades' potent passing attack would be snuffed in the City Section 3-A Division semifinal-round playoff game.

What a strange but exciting night it was in City Section basketball Saturday night at Cal State Dominguez Hills. One comeback succeeded and another failed, leaving fans exhausted and exhilarated. In the first game of a Division I semifinal, top-seeded Woodland Hills Taft held off Crenshaw, 64-63. Crenshaw fell behind 23-7 in the first quarter and was down 34-13 in the second. "Honestly, I think our team came out scared," forward Andre Edwards said. Then came a fourth-quarter Crenshaw comeback that left the Toreadors squirming.

Woodland Hills Taft quarterback Michael Bercovici insisted his team is much better now than it was the first game of the season. On Friday night, the fifth-seeded Toreadors went out and proved it, forcing three fumbles and four interceptions and using a well-balanced attack to upset fourth-seeded Los Angeles Dorsey, 35-18, in a City Section Division I quarterfinal game at Jackie Robinson Stadium in Rancho Cienega Park. Host Dorsey had beaten Taft, 37-24, on the same field in the Toreadors' season opener Sept.

The Taft High girls' volleyball team didn't have a problem building early leads in its City Section Division Championship final Friday night against Fremont. But trying to close the Pathfinders out was as futile as trying to hit through a brick wall. The second-seeded Toreadors fell, 16-14, 15-8, 15-12, at Occidental College after squandering big leads in the first and third games to fourth-seeded Fremont (14-2). "Being behind didn't bother them one bit," Taft Coach Doug Magorien said.

He's no longer Steve Smith of Taft High. Just call him Stevie Wonder. The record-breaking sophomore wide receiver caught two touchdown passes Thursday night and returned an interception 49 yards for another touchdown to help Taft pull away in the second half for a 54-33 victory over Marshall in a City Championship opener. Smith, only 15 but with unlimited talent, finished with five receptions for 118 yards, raising his school-record season totals to 87 catches for 1,530 yards and 16 touchdowns.

After spending the last two years on the Alemany High sideline as the backup quarterback to his older brother, left-hander Ricky Clausen showed Saturday he's more than ready to step out of Casey's shadow. In his first summer passing tournament since transferring to Taft, Clausen, who will be a senior in the fall, led the Toreadors to the Beverly Hills tournament championship Saturday at Beverly Hills High.

Mental toughness. That's what could propel Taft High's volleyball team to a City title. Armed with a group of players that respond when challenged, the Toreadors knocked off visiting Poly, 15-8, 14-16, 15-6, 15-6, on Tuesday in a City Championship semifinal match.

Give Woodland Hills Taft Coach Derrick Taylor a top point guard and he'll usually put together a team to contend for a City Section basketball championship. In 2004, the Toreadors won behind Jordan Farmar. In 2008, they won with Larry Drew Jr. leading the way. And in 2011, they could be celebrating another City title with Colorado-bound Spencer Dinwiddie at the controls. The 6-foot-4 Dinwiddie has a calming effect on his teammates. His team struggled Friday night against Reseda Cleveland when he went to the bench in the first quarter with two fouls.

At the start of each practice, the No. 1-seeded high school basketball team in the City Section, Woodland Hills Taft, plays hopscotch under the guidance of its coach, former NBA guard Jason Hart. I didn't know whether to laugh or ask Hart whether his two young sons had put him up to it. "These kids are traveling at an alarming rate in high school," Hart said. "They can't dribble with their left hand. So I sacrifice a day of coaching for a day of teaching them how to play basketball.

Former NBA guard Jason Hart, in his first season coaching high school basketball, has his Woodland Hills Taft team seeded No. 1 in the City Section Division I playoff pairings released Saturday. The Toreadors (24-3) will open at home Friday night against No. 16 West Adams. Fairfax (19-9) received the No. 2 seeding, followed by No. 3 Westchester (20-6), No. 4 Palisades (16-10) and No. 5 Crenshaw (22-4). "I'm using the knowledge I learned from many coaches," the 33-year-old Hart said.

Los Angeles City Section basketball has produced the likes of NBA players Jordan Farmar (Taft), Trevor Ariza (Westchester) and Craig Smith (Fairfax) in recent years, but the absence of a bona fide standout player and team this season has made it a guessing game as to which schools might end up playing for the Division I title in March. That made Saturday's matchup between longtime powers Taft and Fairfax in a nonleague game all the more important in trying to bring some clarity to the pecking order.

Kris Yanku, a 6-foot-3 junior guard at Woodland Hills Taft, is known as a defensive whiz. He wants to be the player assigned to come up with the big stop with the game on the line. And he delivered on Wednesday in a tension-filled West Valley League basketball opener against neighborhood rival El Camino Real. Taft hadn't lost a league game on the court since 2005, but El Camino Real had the Toreadors right where it wanted them. The Conquistadores had possession of the ball with 10.9 seconds left, down by a point.

Troy Starr turns 50 in February. How quickly the years have gone by. He was a fiery 25-year-old assistant coach at Carson High in 1987 when the team was upset by Granada Hills in the City Section football championship game. In 1992, he became head coach at Woodland Hills Taft, taking over a program that had a 0-8-1 record the previous season. He lasted 14 seasons and built the Toreadors into a City Section power. He resigned in 2007 to become the director of football operations for Urban Meyer at the University of Florida.

Exhaustion. That was how Big Bear High Coach Dave Griffiths described his physical state after his team pulled out a 56-50 victory over host Desert Hot Springs on Friday night in a football game that lasted a state-record eight overtimes. "It was just a phenomenal game, probably the best football game I've ever been involved in," Griffiths said. "I'm not sure how much longer the teams could have gone. After eight overtimes, the kids were worn out and the coaches too. " Lucas Jenkins ended the game with a short touchdown run in the eighth overtime period.

Endings don't get more dramatic than what transpired at the conclusion of Thursday's Southern California regional playoff game between Woodland Hills Taft and Lawndale Leuzinger. With the score tied and 8.9 seconds left, Taft inbounded the ball to Bryce Jones, the 6-foot-5 senior who signed with USC and has become a top candidate for City Section player of the year. Full of confidence and wanting the ball, Jones dribbled to the right wing and connected on a three-pointer at the buzzer, giving the Toreadors a 66-63 victory in the Division I quarterfinals and sending them to a semifinal matchup against Santa Ana Mater Dei on Saturday.

Tomer Firouzman's name is misspelled on the back of his volleyball jersey. Elan Yakovee's right shoulder was decorated with a four-inch scratch from diving into the bleachers for a ball. They're two of the other players on the Taft High boys' volleyball team that have to hustle, scrap and dig beyond belief to get the headlines normally reserved for Joe Nargi. They succeeded Tuesday.

Clutching the City Section championship plaque, senior point guard Spencer Dinwiddie of Woodland Hills Taft stood on the court at USC's Galen Center on Saturday afternoon and reflected on the special place he had earned in the hearts of Taft alumni, alongside Jordan Farmar and Larry Drew Jr. "I'm honored to follow in their footsteps," he said. "Jordan went to the league [the NBA] and Larry went to UNC [North Carolina]. I want to take it a step further. I want to be the first one to win a state title.